A sight
N: oh my god
J: to then comes the storm, and flying animals through the air
N: oh my god
J: to outward fields flows beds… and old clocks, and behind a tree… two young children
N: Who then?
J: I think there are two of us
Now no
J: But it is impossible to recognize, for it is…
N: covered
J: soil
N: earth and grass
J: grass and old leaves…
War is intoxication, power, and the smell of blood – and reveals how empathy disappears when hunter instinct kicks in. The loss of dignity leaves us unable to forgive or be forgiven.
The performance is inspired by Holberg’s Jeppe of the Hill. The story of a war-torn man who takes refuge in rapture. His wife tries helplessly to knock sense into his skull.
We fear the outcasts because they are erratic in their behavior and reminds us of everything that can go wrong.
Jeppe is the scapegoat. He lives in a delirious chaos, a free space for visionary ideas and dystopian ruminations. Exposed to everyday life, he has no ability to be wanting what he wants and is a symptom of an overstrained world.
The text material is partially improvised by the ensemble and mixed with text fragments from Jeppe of the Hill, Maria Tryti Vennerød and video interviews with drug therapist Vegar Lenslie, weapon expert Ketil Davidsen, peace worker Marguarite Barankitse and Dalai Lama. The theatrical action unfolds in dialogue with the film material. The soundscape is produced by 3 Ears in collaboration with the sound designer and is partially recorded and processed live from the scene.
From the press
IdaLou Larsen, A cavalcade of war misery, 17.10.2014, Klassekampen [Oslo]:
“A performance with many qualities, but maybe a little unfinished? […] Fortunately, it constantly pops up new strong satirical performances. […] Rebekah Joki […] gives a warm interpretation of the important role og Nille.”
Inger Marie Kjølstadmyr, A hint of vanity in 3D, 17.10.2014, Dagsavisen [Oslo]:
“Jeppe and Nille represent the modern Norwegian couple who are trapped in their relational conflicts and hardly recognize that they are a part of a larger world before everything goes horribly wrong. […] This is a show that wants something. […] Holberg’s social critique holds a complexity in worldview while De Utvalgtes’ performance become too easy. Even if the intentions and points are good.”
Chris Erichsen, Jeppe of our time, 20.10.2014, Scenekunst.no:
“This is a typical performance from De Utvalgte: A scene language which is associative and can point in different directions, rather than the intrusive snap-snap-doyouknowwhatImean-style that too many people use when they are supposed to actualize a classic. […] The”chosen one” this time is the Jeppe character in different varieties […]. The performance is full of […] both surprising and beautiful moments that trigger the force field in which thought and emotion meet. […] But here this dreamlike logic is partly taken away and thereby also the reasons for the presence of some of the scenes. […] But now I have to defend De Utvalgte against my own criticism: They administer a unique project. And this theater piece has scenes that stay in the system and do not leave you until you have become coloured by it. “